Geospatial Risk Assessment Expert (Consultant) – Thailand 3 views

A. Organization Introduction:

ADPC is an autonomous international organization established for scientific, educational, developmental, and humanitarian purposes with a vision of safer communities and sustainable development through disaster risk reduction and climate resilience in Asia and the Pacific. Established in 1986 as a technical capacity building center, ADPC has grown and expanded its role to be for scientific, educational, developmental and humanitarian purposes. ADPC employs a wide range of professional expertise typically required for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Climate Resilience (CR) in an effective manner. ADPC develops and implements cross-sectoral projects/programs on the strategic themes of risk governance, urban resilience, climate resilience, health risk management, preparedness for response and resilient recovery. Our strategic themes are complemented and underpinned by the cross-cutting themes of gender and diversity, regional and transboundary cooperation as well as poverty and livelihoods.

Through its work, ADPC supports the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the New Urban Agenda, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the agenda defined at the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016, and other relevant international frameworks.

For details, please refer to ADPC website at http://www.adpc.net/.

B. Department Introduction

The Risk Analytics and Climate Services Department is a multi-disciplinary team of experts committed to providing innovative, science-based solutions for actions to adapt to climate change and mitigate the impacts of disasters. The innovations include uses of geospatial technology, satellite data, numerical models, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence for assessing vulnerability and risk, generating climate data, developing early warning systems, forecasting possible climate impact, and informing anticipatory actions. These lead to risk-informed developments in the sectors such as agriculture, transportation, water resources, energy, communications and health.

The department also applies advanced geoinformatics and climate analytics to address water and food security issues by assessing water availability and water-use efficiency, groundwater monitoring, assessing drought risks, and optimizing agricultural productivity, hence ensuring sustainable water and food systems in vulnerable regions. The department promotes Nature-Based Solutions by leveraging ecosystem services such as wetland restoration, agroforestry, and green-gray infrastructure to reduce disaster risks and build climate resilience. Lastly, the department produces risk analytics and integrates them into urban plans and engineering designs of critical infrastructures, hence improving their resilience to disasters and climate change. With a commitment to science-based approach, the department envisions empowering stakeholders to reduce risks, adapt to climate change, and build more resilient communities and ecosystems.

C. Statement of Intent

Under the Development of a Landslide Disaster Decision Support System (DSS) for Thailand (DMRLS), ADPC is supporting the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR), Thailand, to develop a national-scale Landslide Disaster Decision Support System (DSS). The DSS aims to improve landslide risk assessment, rainfall-trigger thresholds, early warning, and decision-making for landslide risk reduction in Thailand.

To support data preparation, risk analysis, and communication of results, ADPC seeks to recruit a Geospatial Risk Assessment Expert (Consultant) to assist with digitization of paper-based data, advanced GIS analysis, data standardization, visualization, and literature review related to disaster risk and vulnerability assessment.

D. Scope of Work

The Geospatial Risk Assessment Expert will support the DMRLS technical team by converting analogue and heterogeneous data into GIS-ready formats, conducting advanced spatial and risk analyses, managing large and diverse datasets, and producing clear, user-oriented visualizations. The consultant will also support background research on disaster risk and vulnerability assessment methods relevant to landslides.

E. Expected Outputs:

The consultant is expected to deliver the following outputs:

1. Digitized and geo-referenced datasets converted from paper-based or non-GIS sources.
2. Standardized, cleaned, and well-organized geospatial and tabular datasets ready for analysis.
3. Literature review on key approaches in disaster risk and vulnerability assessment relevant to landslides.
4. Advanced GIS-based risk and vulnerability analysis outputs supporting the DMRLS project.
5. High-quality maps and visualizations tailored to different end users (e.g. technical teams, decision-makers).

F. Responsibilities and Tasks:

The Geospatial Risk Assessment Expert will undertake the following tasks:

• Digitize paper-based maps, reports, and records into GIS-compatible formats.
• Process and integrate multi-source and multi-format datasets (e.g. shapefiles, rasters, spreadsheets, reports).
• Conduct advanced GIS analyses related to hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and risk.
• Apply data cleaning, normalization, and standardization techniques to ensure consistency across datasets.
• Support data management, including file structures, metadata, and version control.
• Develop clear and effective map visualizations, adapted to different audiences and decision-making needs.
• Conduct a targeted literature review on disaster risk assessment and vulnerability analysis, with relevance to landslides and flash flood.
• Support the technical team with ad hoc GIS and data analysis tasks as required.

G. Working Principles:

• The consultant will report to the DMRLS Project Manager.

• The consultant will work closely with DMRLS Project Manager/Climate Risk and Vulnerability Specialist

• Regular coordination meetings (online or in-person) will be held as required.

  The role requires flexibility to respond to technical support needs during the project period.

H. Qualifications:

• Background in GIS, Geospatial Science, Environmental Science, Disaster Risk Management, Data Science, or related fields.
• Strong practical experience in GIS analysis and spatial data processing (e.g. QGIS, ArcGIS, or equivalent).
• Demonstrated ability to digitize and geo-reference data from non-digital or paper-based sources.
• Experience handling large and complex datasets with different formats, including data cleaning, normalization, and standardization.
• Knowledge of disaster risk assessment concepts, including hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and risk.
• Experience or familiarity with vulnerability analysis is an asset.
• Ability to produce clear, high-quality maps and visualizations for diverse end users.
• Good analytical, documentation, and communication skills in English.

(Formal degree level or seniority is flexible; demonstrated technical skills and hands-on ability are more important.)

1. Duty Station: ADPC Head office, Bangkok, Thailand

J. Duration: The contract will be for a period of 3 months between February 2026 – April 2026.

K. Itinerary: Any official travel required during the contract period must be approved in advance by the Director of ACS. Approved travel expenses will be covered by ADPC in accordance with its travel policy and will be reimbursed separately from the consultant’s remuneration.

L. Condition of payment:

The consultancy shall be output-based, with payments made upon satisfactory completion and acceptance of agreed deliverables by ADPC and the DMRLS Project Manager.

The total consultancy fee is USD 5,000 for the full duration of the assignment. Payments will be made in two (2) instalments, linked to the delivery of outputs as outlined in Section E:

Payment Schedule

Payment Round 1 – 50% (USD 2,500)
Paid upon satisfactory completion and acceptance of the following outputs:

• Output 1: Digitized and geo-referenced datasets from paper-based or non-GIS sources
• Output 2: Standardized, cleaned, and organized datasets ready for analysis
• Output 3: Literature review on disaster risk and vulnerability assessment related to landslide and flash flood

Payment Round 2 – 50% (USD 2,500)
Paid upon satisfactory completion and acceptance of the following outputs:

• Output 3: Advanced GIS-based risk and vulnerability analysis outputs
• Output 4: High-quality maps and visualizations for different end users

Payments will be transferred to the consultant’s designated bank account. No additional compensation shall be provided unless prior written approval for supplementary expenses is obtained from the designated authority. The consultant shall bear any applicable bank charges. All payments are inclusive of income tax and VAT, for which the consultant is solely responsible for declaration and settlement in accordance with relevant tax regulations.